But the non-invasive test could help eliminate the illness, as it detects malaria before patients present any clinical symptoms.

Malaria is a life threatening illness caused by a parasite and spread between people by female mosquitoes. Identifying human carriers of the disease is crucial in the fight to stop transmission - treating people reduces the disease pool which infects mosquitoes and allows the disease to spread.

The new tool, the first to use saliva rather than blood to diagnose malaria, identifies a biomarker in spit which indicates the presence of the malaria parasite. Results are given almost immediately.

“If we cannot identify carriers of malaria, we cannot eliminate the disease,” said Dr Benji Pretorius, founder of ERADA, the company behind the diagnostic tool. “Currently we are treating reactively, but carriers are still out there and we are not winning the fight against mosquitoes.

“This test is an easy, affordable way to go into the field and find carriers of malaria, which will support treatment and vaccination initiatives,” he added.

The saliva test, which involves spitting into a tube and waiting between five to 20 minutes for a diagnosis, has the added benefit of being less invasive than blood tests and can be used outside a clinical setting, in schools or community centres, for around the same cost.

He says the test could be used to conduct mass malaria screenings in regions where the disease is prevalent.

“2.3 billion people chance exposure to malaria each day; early detection and early treatment can end this disease and save lives,” Dr Pretorius said. “[This] will be a major catalyst in meeting the WHO’s 2030 target to reduce malaria incidence and mortality by 90 per cent.”